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Re: questionnaire response rates?



As an archival repository, we get frequent mass questionnaires for
information.   My personal preference is for short questionnaires that
are to the point, highly explanatory, and easy to fill out.   The worst
questionnaire that I ever received was seven pages long...and then
had questions like "Please list every collection you have that contains
photographs, how many, dates covered, subjects, restrictions, type of
photograph, negatives (if any)"

Perhaps for starters, you could begin with "Do you have audio or video
tapes in your collections?" and a checklist of types (reels, cassettes,
vhs, beta, etc.).    Then perhaps "Is there a particular type of subject
that you focus on in collecting these?"    And then I would go for a
contact so your staff can all them and talk some more.    I've found it
far easier to explain a collection and its scope then trying to write it
all down on a questionnaire.

Dean

Dean DeBolt
University Librarian
Special Collections and West Florida Archives
John C. Pace Library
University of West Florida
11000 University Parkway
Pensacola, FL  32514-5750
Tele:  850-474-2213;   Fax:  850-474-3338

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